The ruling and opposition parties agreed Wednesday to create a joint panel to discuss legislative measures aimed at helping victims of “spiritual sales” from some religious groups and imposing restrictions on donations amid criticism involving the Unification Church.

The agreement was made between the Liberal Democratic Party and two opposition parties: the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and Nippon Ishin no Kai. Komeito, the LDP’s junior coalition partner, will also join the discussions.

“It’s a big step forward,” CDP Diet affairs chief Jun Azumi told reporters after the meeting.

The government was already planning to submit a package of legislation to parliament. But by reaching out to the opposition, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida could dampen the momentum of opposition lawmakers who have been grilling the him over his handling of the religious group during the current parliamentary session.

Such an agreement would also allow the legislation to pass smoothly in both chambers of parliament, since opposition parties are already on board.

On Tuesday, officials from the Consumer Affairs Agency, the Justice Ministry, the education ministry and the National Police Agency created a team to work on the legislation based on a report compiled by an expert panel under the consumer agency the day before.

The report called for easing restrictions in the current law to permit canceling purchases made via spiritual sales — even after the five year period currently allowed. It also recommended allowing people other than the purchaser to make the cancellation. Families of Unification Church followers have complained that the current law only allows the one who made the purchase to cancel the order. It also urged the government to revise or create new legislation to restrict donations, including allowing such donations to be canceled, following concerns that people who are under some form of mind manipulation aren't able to make logical decisions.

Spiritual sales refers to the practice of talking people into buying jars or other items, which they are told posses supernatural benefits, for exorbitant prices, often through coercion.

The opposition came up with more detailed measures in its legislation submitted to the Lower House.

The opposition's bill restricts people from making donations of over a quarter of their annual income. It also allows the government to suspend or ban organizations from soliciting donations from people who are deemed unable to make a sane decision, and impose criminal penalties if the organization receiving the payments doesn't comply.

The controversial Unification Church, which is formally called the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, said earlier this month that it will check the financial conditions of followers who appear to be donating more than 30% of the their monthly income.

The bill also allows the person who made the donations or their family members to retrieve the funds if the person is considered to be under some form of brainwashing or mind control.

On Tuesday, the CDP and Nippon Ishin urged the LDP to hold discussions on relief measures for victims of spiritual sales tactics based on the bills.

The move is part of Kishida’s attempt to take stricter measures to deal with the Unification Church.

On Monday, Kishida instructed the education ministry to begin an investigation into the Unification Church and determine whether a court should strip the group of its “religious corporation” status, which grants them tax benefits.

Kishida then moved an inch further on Tuesday, saying the government might consider making the request to the court and that the church may be violating criminal laws.

On Wednesday, Kishida took another step forward by saying that civil code violations alone would be enough for the government to make a request to the court, backtracking his initial comment that violations of the civil code would not constitute “law violations” stipulated in the Religious Corporation Law.

The religious group came under scrutiny after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated in July, with the suspect believing Abe had strong ties with the Unification Church. The man being held over the shooting reportedly experienced financial hardship after his mother donated more than ¥100 million to the church, essentially bankrupting her family.

Information from Kyodo added